Si2 Microsystems Brings Three Significant Offerings for Indian Smart Cities

By Manu Sharma

As the Indian government rolls out its ambitious program of developing 100 Smart Cities on fast track, Si2 Microsystems, a leading firm into FPGA design and development capabilities is embarking on a three key offerings in the race for the smart cities.

For solutions related to smart city requirements, SI2 Microsystems has developed chip sets for smart cities with focus on three key offerings; Smart Street Lighting and Monitoring System; Smart Metering Network; and Smart Traffic Control System.

Talking to the media, Dinanath Soni, Executive Director of Si2 Microsystems (India) said, “The Smart Cities initiative of the government is a bold, new initiative. The objective is to promote cities that focuses on sustainable and inclusive development and the idea is to look at compact areas, create a replicable model which will act like a light house to other aspiring cities. We have already developed these chips for the Indian market and are partnering with three major firms in this respect.”

As part of the ‘Make In India’ campaign, we develop and roll out our chip sets from our own facilities in India, says Soni and adding besides Si2 has also designed and developed a number of RF products for use in smart cities solutions.

Among the three key offerings for the smart cities, we shall take a look at what Si2 is offering in the market and its benefits for the industry leaders.

Smart Streetlight Control and Monitoring System:

SI2 Microsystems street lighting solution has a number of benefits and these includes: Centrally GIS web-based inventory control with improved roadway safety. Its other features include energy savings up to 80% and maintenance cost reduction up to 50%. Besides the system reduces carbon emission and has proactive maintenance system.

Specific to Si2 technology, the street light brightness can be controlled to save energy and an immediate report can be sent to the control room if the street light is not working or partially working. That’s not all. The street light monitoring and controlling is achieved by wireless communication using ZigBee based wireless modules. The street lights can be monitored and controlled from a centralized area and also controlled remotely via cell phone by a suitable street light application. Also efficient application software makes it easy to track, troubleshoot, maintain and control the street lights selectively.

So in layman terms, here is what a common person can look forward to in the upcoming Indian smart cities. By using smart chip and enabling mobile cloud-based technology, street lights are able to identify themselves and also network via smart plug and play approach. Hence the next-generation LED street lighting gives quality lighting, saves energy, reduces maintenance and provides safe streets for residents. The web-based technology also enables manage street lighting. In addition, management system using chips can enable remotely control lighting fixtures and monitor energy usage and help identify themselves and network, thus reducing costs and avoid on-site maintenance.

Smart / RF Metering Network: Here is some pointers on what Si2 Microsystems offers -

•      Smart/RF metering communication network (wireless) for transmission of meter data from customer houses to meter management system

•      Transmits and collects data reliably from each meter in an automatic manner

•      Ensures the meter data security

•      Easy to maintain and manage effectively and properly

•      Reliable and robust network for continuous long time usage

•      Easy to construct and maintain at low cost

So  in order to reduce energy consumption, pilfer of power, identify faulty power points and save money on bills, consumers need to monitor their energy use carefully through Smart Meters and then make an effort to change the daily energy usage behaviour (such as less TV watching, switching off PCs when not in use) especially in peak time.

Smart Traffic Control System: Here is a list of some key features Si2 technology offers:

·        *  More efficiency use of roads

·        * Shorter journey time

·        * Significantly fewer accidents

·        *  Lower carbon emissions

·        *  Less congestion of traffic

·       *  Efficient application software makes it easy to track, troubleshoot, maintain and control the street lights selectively.

•  Presence Based Adaptive Lighting

–     Lights dim to pre-defined levels during off-peak hours.

–     Surrounding lights increase to full brightness as soon as human presence (pedestrian, bicycle or car) is detected.

• Energy Savings Data

–     Custom reports can be generated to help track energy consumption and savings across the system.

•  Weather Control 

–     Lighting levels adjust to weather conditions such as heavy rain and snow.

•  Fail Proof

–     Lights go to full brightness in the event of system failure.

•  Reduced Light Pollution   

–     Adaptive controls reduce light pollution and create a healthier living environment for both humans and wildlife.

In conclusion, Smart Traffic Control initiative with a GIS enabled digital road map of the city, coupled with the power of analytics, is the key to smooth traffic management. After collecting information from the Traffic Management System, the data analytics tool aligns the data in real time with GIS mapping and parking management, to provide information to motorists on the best route to take, thereby helping reduce traffic pile up.  This is already being used in many smart cities across the globe.

 “The Smart Cities has been allocated Rs 48,000 crore and 30% of the cost of manufacturing is going to be on software and the future would be around Internet of Things and Everything (IOT&E),” remarks Soni.